News From the Nest, March 30

New on the Blog

As if on cue, enter a new fermentation recipe! I’ve been fermenting for about two years now, and my Beet Sauerkraut Recipe has earned a permanent spot in my rotation — even Terry, a self-declared Beet Loather, enjoys it, which is about as high a compliment as it gets around here. Red cabbage and beets ferment together into something tangy, earthy, and just slightly sweet, and supremely beneficial to your gut health. The post includes a full day-by-day fermentation timeline, tips for success, flavor variations, and thorough troubleshooting — everything you need to make this your first ferment or your best one yet.

From the Knit + Crochet Studio, aka Grandma Fiber Crafts 😉

If you knit, you probably already know that kitchen projects are some of the most satisfying — quick, useful, and easy to gift. My Kitchen Knit and Crochet Patterns roundup gathers all my free dishcloth, washcloth, potholder, and trivet patterns in one place, along with yarn recommendations for this project type. It’s a great page to bookmark as your go-to for a quick gift or to use up a skein of cotton.

Speaking of kitchen knits, these Hand Knit Washcloths with Moss Stitch are one of my all-time favorite quick projects — easy enough for beginners, satisfying enough for experienced knitters, and genuinely useful in both the kitchen and bath. Reader BetteAnn wrote in to say the instructions with pictures are the clearest and easiest to follow she has ever seen on any site, including video instructions, which made my day. They also make a lovely hostess or teacher appreciation gift, especially tied up with a bar of pretty soap.

One of the most common knitting frustrations — especially for newer knitters — is ending up with stitches that look twisted or distorted without knowing why. My post on Twisted Knit Stitches walks you through exactly how to recognize a twisted stitch, what causes it in the first place, and three different ways to fix it depending on how far back the error occurred. Reader Tricia wrote in just this past February to say these lessons answered every question she had as a beginner knitter and that she finally felt like she could find the help she needed — and that is exactly why I write posts like this one. 😊

If there’s a baby on the way in your world this spring, my Polka Dot Baby Blanket with Bauble Edge is a reversible, beginner-friendly knit that looks far more complicated than it is. The body is worked in basic knit and purl stitches in a polka-dot repeat, and the optional crocheted bauble border is so charming that you’ll want to give it a try even if you are new to crochet. Don’t worry, I’ll walk you through it!!

There are scones, and then there are Lemon Rosemary Scones — just barely sweet, perfectly tangy with lemon, and finished with that piney freshness that only fresh rosemary brings. They pair beautifully with tea or coffee and a generous spoonful of jam, and reader Lynne wrote in to say, “I made these last night, and my husband loves them. He’s a fan of the lemon bars, so he enjoys desserts with lemon in them. I almost prefer them without the glaze.” The post includes tips for getting that perfect crumbly-not-flakey texture that a good scone demands, and the dough refrigerates up to five days, which makes them great for planning ahead.

Summer is plum season, and my Easy Plum Jam Recipe is a beautifully simple, no-pectin jam that lets the fruit’s flavor do the talking. An optional sprig of rosemary added while the plums cook down gives the finished jam a subtle piney note that is sophisticated without being fussy. The post includes full canning instructions as well as refrigerator and freezer options, making it accessible whether you’re an experienced canner or just starting out. Sharing this with you today makes me want to run out and find a bushel of plums, as my pantry is missing this yummy jam.

With local strawberries arriving at markets right soon, this Strawberry Crisp deserves a spot on your baking list. The oven draws the juice out of the berries and thickens it into a glossy syrup, all under a buttery, crunchy oatmeal streusel topping — and the whole thing takes about 15 minutes of hands-on work before the oven takes over. The post points out that a crisp and a crumble are almost identical except for one ingredient — the oats — and if you’d rather go crumble, there’s a link to that recipe as well.

Store-bought hummus just doesn’t compare to homemade, and this Creamy Hummus with Smoky Walnut Topping is proof. The secret to getting it genuinely smooth — without the annoying step of removing each chickpea’s skin by hand, which I will confess I did exactly once — is brining the dried beans overnight in salted water before cooking. Reader Kathleen confirmed the brining method makes all the difference, and the smoky, paprika-forward walnut topping spooned over the top takes it from ordinary snack to something worth making a meal of alongside some good pita and olives.

Turkey burgers have a reputation for being dry and bland, but these Moist and Flavorful Turkey Burgers solve that problem with a handful of smart mix-ins — grated onion and its juice, milk-soaked panko, mayonnaise, and Dijon mustard — that lock moisture and flavor into every patty. The post covers four cooking methods: air fryer, stovetop with a sear, oven-baked, and grilled, so you can make them however works best for your kitchen this time of year. They also freeze beautifully, which makes them a great candidate for a batch-cooking afternoon. In a nutshell…SERIOUS YUM FACTOR!

These Lemon Icebox Cookies are one of those recipes that manages to be both simple and a little bit elegant at the same time. The dough comes together quickly, refrigerates for up to five days, and bakes into tender, lightly sweet rounds that get dipped in a tangy lemon glaze. The optional fresh pansy pressed into the wet glaze turns them into something genuinely beautiful — and the post confirms that you can freeze the finished cookies, flowers and all, with surprisingly good results, which makes them ideal for planning ahead for a spring gathering.

From the Arts + Crafts Studio

These DIY Polymer Clay Garden Markers are one of those projects that hits all the marks — useful, beautiful, inexpensive, and doable in an afternoon with supplies from any craft store. You roll out white polymer clay, cut it into pointed strips, stamp the herb names with letter stamps, bake them, and then paint a wash of brown acrylic into the letters to make them pop. With a quarter pound of clay, you can make six markers; they hold up well outdoors once cured, and a bundle of them makes a genuinely thoughtful gift for any gardener.

Making your own pillow shams sounds like an ambitious project until you realize that all it takes is the ability to sew a straight seam. This Pillow Sham Pattern with a Flange Edge walks you through every step of making Euro or standard shams with that polished flanged border that gives them such a tailored look — and the post includes a printable fabric cutting worksheet so you don’t have to do the math yourself. I used fusible fleece on the front piece to keep the flange from flopping, and it made a big difference in the finished result.

In the House + Home

A decorator friend helped me rethink my living room bookshelves, and the Tips for Decorating Bookshelves post shares everything she taught me — including the tip that made the single biggest visual impact. Unifying all my frame colors to gold cost about $41 for six frames and transformed the whole wall. Her “nothing smaller than a cantaloupe” rule for decorative objects is the one that stung a little but was absolutely right, and the before-and-after photos in the post show just how much difference small, intentional changes can make.

In the Garden

Now that spring planting is here, it’s worth thinking carefully about what you put next to your zucchini. My post on Zucchini Companion Plants covers the best pairings — marigolds for pest control, borage and nasturtiums for pollinators, beans and peas for nitrogen fixation, and leafy greens that won’t compete for space — as well as the plants you should keep far away, like fennel, potatoes, and melons. Understanding these relationships before you plant can genuinely make the difference between a struggling zucchini and a sprawling, productive one.

Whether you’re putting together your first container garden or your fifteenth, my post on Container Gardening Basics: Thrillers, Fillers, and Spillers gives you a simple framework for building containers that look intentional and polished rather than random. The idea is straightforward — a tall dramatic thriller plant at the center or back, mid-height fillers for texture and color, and trailing spillers to soften the edges — and once you understand it, you’ll never leave a nursery with a mismatched cart of plants again. A list of plants for each category helps you nail down the right look for your pots. And for those of you planting zucchini nearby, nasturtiums make an excellent companion plant for zucchini and a beautiful spiller in a container, so they pull double duty this season.